Family Ties
by AndAllThatMishigas
Summary: Pre-series, set during the campaign. CJ, Toby, Sam, and Josh all have a drink together and tease each other. Abbey overhears and brings the news back to Jed.


Author's Note: I have a strange attachment to Sam Seaborn, and this idea just popped into my head, so I decided to write it. Please enjoy and review :)

**Family Ties**

The members of the Bartlet campaign sat in the bar of some hotel in some city in America. They'd lost track of where the hell they were at that point. They'd been to six states in seven days. Leo and Josh were the only ones who ever really kept track of the schedule. Toby was busy writing and rewriting the stump speech. CJ was busy drafting press releases and keeping the vultures from various media outlets at bay. Sam hadn't slept in about three days, too focused on learning anything and everything he could about domestic policy so he could be a help to Toby and Governor Bartlet as they prepared for the final debate.

But now they had a moment to breathe. They were spending the whole next day traveling, so they could actually take a couple hours to sit in a bar and spend time together. Toby happily puffed on his cigar. CJ was laughing at something he had said, trying not to choke on her beer. Sam watched them with a smile. Josh sat next to him, making sarcastic commentary under his breath so only Sam could hear.

"Hey Josh, where's Donna?" CJ asked.

"She said she was going to catch up on sleep. Not sure what good she thinks that'll do. With all the time changes, she's just going to end up jetlagged and cranky," Josh replied.

"She's already cranky!" Toby insisted. "Did you see the way she bit off Danny Concannon's head this morning?"

Josh started laughing. "Yeah, that was great. Poor Danny."

"What happened?" CJ asked.

Toby and Josh shared a knowing look. Toby answered for the both of them. "Danny was asking about you."

CJ's eyes went wide. "About me? What about me?"

"He likes you, CJ," Josh told her.

She rolled her eyes. "He's a reporter and I'm the media liaison. He's trying to get inside information."

"He likes you. But you can probably use that to our advantage," Toby pointed out.

"Shut up!" CJ insisted, laughing and smacking Toby's arm.

Toby just laughed. "Drink your beer, CJ."

"Oh and speaking of people with crushes," Josh said, looking pointedly at Sam.

"What!?" Sam sat up and furrowed his brow at his friend.

Josh just grinned. "Did you guys see how tongue-tied Sam got when Mrs. Bartlet yelled at him today?"

"She did not yell at me!"

CJ shook her head. "No, she yelled at you, Sam. Something about being sleep-deprived and dehydrated?"

"She's a doctor. It's her job to pay attention to people's health," Sam defended.

"Yes, but usually when a doctor tells someone to get some sleep and drink more water, a person doesn't blush and stutter for a minute and a half before the doctor rolls her eyes and walks away," Toby said.

Sam blushed again. "This is ridiculous."

"It's okay, Sam. Mrs. Bartlet is beautiful and you've always had a thing for smart, assertive women who boss you around," Josh teased.

Sam didn't respond. He just drank his beer, hoping it would keep his face from growing even redder.

CJ couldn't stop laughing. "Sam, were you the kid in junior high who faked a stomachache so he could get out of class and visit the school nurse to flirt with her?"

"Would you stop!?" Sam was trying to get angry, but he was just embarrassed. Because he was exactly that kid in junior high. Maybe that's why Mrs. Bartlet made him nervous.

Josh raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, we'll stop. But only because if Leo finds out, he'll put you on her staff for the rest of the campaign. And if the Governor finds out, he'll probably kill you."

The four of them fell into a comfortable silence as they finished their drinks. CJ rested her head on Toby's shoulder after he snuffed out his cigar. Josh leaned back and propped his feet up on the table. Sam lazily twirled his empty beer bottle between his hands. No one wanted to get up, even though it was close to midnight and they should try to get some rest. None of them wanted to break the peaceful stillness just yet.

But none of them had noticed that Dr. Abbey Bartlet had been standing in the shadows at the other end of the bar and had heard the entire conversation. She had come down to get a bottle of wine for she and her husband to share before bed, but ended up staying for the entertainment the staff had just provided. Abbey smirked to herself as she took the bottle of pinot grigio and snuck back upstairs as undetected as she had entered.

"You look pleased about something," Jed noted as his wife came back to their room. "What's going on?"

Abbey chuckled. "The staff is down in the bar, blowing off some steam, and I overheard some things."

Jed grinned, knowing this was going to be fun. His staff worked very hard, and they were very devoted to him. They deserved to relax a little. But he also loved knowing what was going on with them. It made everything more entertaining for him in the midst of endless speeches and debates on the campaign trail. "So what did you overhear?"

"Apparently Danny Concannon has a thing for CJ."

He nodded. "Well sure, everyone can see that. Most of the staff has a thing for CJ. And for good reason."

Abbey's eyebrows jumped up her forehead. "Something I should know?"

"Nah, she's too tall for me," Jed teased. "I like my women short and curvy and using words like pneumothorax and myocardial infarction."

She grinned. "You're not the only one."

"Oh?"

"They were all teasing Sam because apparently he's got a bit of a crush on me."

Jed frowned, thinking. "And which one is Sam?"

Abbey rolled her eyes. To think that her Nobel Prize-winning soon-to-be-President husband couldn't keep track of the names of people they'd been tripping over for the last year. "Sam is the one who's been doing debate prep with you."

"And to think, until right now, I kinda liked him."

"Oh stop. I know you adore that boy."

"Not anymore. I'm gonna have to fire him. Or kill him. Take your pick."

She knew he was being sarcastic, but that didn't make her find him any less annoying. She chose to ignore him. "Where's the bottle opener? I thought we were gonna have some wine."

Jed handed her the corkscrew and the wine glasses. "In all seriousness though, I do like Sam. He's got a little more to learn than the others, but his heart is in it."

"They all have their hearts in it. That's why they're here," Abbey replied as she opened the wine.

"No, that's different. They work on the campaign. Have you noticed the way Sam speaks when he's doing debate prep with me? Someday, someone's going to come to Sam the way Leo came to me and it'll be his campaign we're all working for."

"You think so?"

"Oh yeah. It'll take a while, but it's there." Jed clinked his glass against Abbey's and took a sip of wine.

Abbey curiously watched the small smile play on her husband's lips. "You're feeling kinda fatherly towards him, aren't you?"

"I feel a little fatherly toward all of them. CJ and Josh and Sam. Not really Toby."

She laughed. "No, not really Toby at all. But the other three, have we adopted them?"

"Yeah, sure, might as well. Josh and Sam can be the sons I never had."

"We've got Doug," Abbey pointed out, referring to their son-in-law.

Jed made a face indicating his feelings about Doug Westin. "I'd rather have Josh and Sam."

Abbey giggled, agreeing with his sentiment. "Well now we've got them. And I can tell you right now that both of those boys would rather die than let you or Leo down."

His expression changed. He nodded. "I know." His voice was serious, but Jed quickly returned to his lighthearted tone. "Even if Sam does have a thing for you."

"Josh said I was beautiful."

"Oh great, now I have to kill him too."

"Jed, you be nice to them."

"Me?" he said with feigned innocence, "I'm always nice. But you're the one who needs to be nice."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she challenged.

He started to laugh. "I know how you get. You're going to torture those boys within an inch of their lives. Just don't work them into too much of a sexual frenzy."

Her nose wrinkled as she grinned, proud of her special skills being recognized. "No, you're the only one I want to work into a sexual frenzy, babe."

"Is that so? Care to test your talents?"

"Finish your wine," she said, trying to hide her smile.

Jed scooted closer to her and grinned, his blue eyes sparkling excitedly. "Trying to get me drunk, Dr. Bartlet?"

Abbey let out a throaty laugh. "No, I just don't want you to spill wine on the sheets."

At that, Jed drained the remaining few sips remaining in his glass, letting it fall out of his hand and roll away on the carpeted hotel room floor. Abbey mimicked his actions so her hands could be free to push him back on the bed and crawl over his body.


End file.
